Tag: Fun

First day of the week and I’m drenched from head to toe as I return home, and, I’m famished. The dark clouds always definitely are an indication of something good, but getting drenched in the rain is definitely not my cup of tea. I splatter water all around in the house as I make my way towards my room, when an astonishingly familiar aroma hits me. An astonishingly familiar, yet mouth-wateringly delicious aroma. Patience not withstanding, I ask my mom what she’s cooking and she replies, albeit with a bit of hesitation “Rava Kichdi”
Though I’m more than willing to gulp down anything she gives me, I mock-gag at the name and sneak into my room.
Minutes later, I get to gobble platefuls of hot piping Kichdi generously lathered with the best sambhar on earth.
This, without a doubt, is the BEST meal I’ve ever had, until date.

I wouldn’t trade this for anything in the world. Anything.
Each has his own favorite rain-food. Masala chai. Moong Dal Ke Pakode. Bhajiyas. This, has to be mine. 💖
Cheers!✨

Last week, my friend and I decided to check in at a fancy new cafe for breakfast. A look at the menu card and we were lost for options. Two steaming cups of milk later, we decided to check out the sandwiches. She ordered a Peanut Butter – Jam sandwich first and began eating it. She relishes it everytime she buys it and gets teleported to an entirely different world when she eats it, as do so many of my other friends. I, on the other hand, was still debating between a Chilly Cheese sandwich and a Mixed Vegetable sandwich. But a glance at my friend enjoying her Peanut Butter prompted me to go for it too, despite the fact that I hated peanut butter. I ended up spoiling my appetite. Yet again.

This, I reflect, is not just the case with a simple sandwich. It is pretty much the case with everything you’d want to have, in life too. We, almost always, end up choosing what our brother/father/friend/neighbour/cousin thinks is good for us. Or someone else close has chosen it for themselves and has come out in shining colours. Or pretty much the rest of the society has gone for it. We feel the need to live up to their expectations. We feel the pressure to carry forward and build their reputation. And if we fail, or don’t prosper as high as the bar is set, we crumble.

What we forget is the fact that we are an entirely different entity, and what has worked for somebody else need not necessarily work for us too. What is somebody else’s choice need not be ours too. We have our own likes, dislikes and preferences. Each of us is unique and extremely special blessed exquisitely with different talents. We need to harness what we are good at, to the best of our potential and fly high.

What happens is, in the process of getting influenced, we begin to lose focus. We begin to lose track of what we want. We begin to compromise with what we get/what we are forced to choose. We begin to change. We begin to move on.

Anything we’d want in life, we have to learn to go for it and make it ours. Despite the chaos.
Let’s face it. There are and will be plenty of options. Options that tempt us. Options that allure us. Options that confuse us. And there will be plenty of people who’d be opting for so many of those and come out successfully. But let that not deter us from going for what we want. The key here, is to focus. To focus completely, totally and absolutely on just what we want. To focus on what will make us happy.

Because, at the fag end of our life, we wouldn’t want to be saying “I could have…”

“Keep your face towards the sunshine and you will not see the shadows.”

We come across plenty of situations from time to time in our lives that tend to throw us off track. That tend to depress us. That tend to slow us down and make us think. That tend to break our hearts. That tend to make us feel defeated. That tend to force us to break down and cry. Plenty. Every day.

But, life, is meant to be a rollercoaster ride, ain’t it? I mean, there are highs. There are lows. There is stability. There are moments of peace. Moments of joy. Moments of contemplation. Moments of exhilaration. Moments of sorrow. Moments of satisfaction. And nothing ever stays the same. Everything keeps changing, in some form, at some time.

So, why bow down for sympathy when grief hits us? Why let grief engulf our very being, our very existence? Every single soul goes through grief. Each has his own share of sorrow. Nobody is spared. But how we choose to deal with it makes us what we are, shapes us to who we want to become. The endless grumbling, complaining and lamenting ain’t going to take us anywhere. Being grumpy wouldn’t help us find a solution. The meaningless accusing and whining wouldn’t help us reach where we want to. But that is what most of us end up doing, everytime we find ourselves in an unpleasant situation.

Instead, let’s follow this.

Discuss. Debate. Decide. The 3 magic words that’ll help us reach a better solution than all the mumbling would. Discuss and debate, not digress. Learn how people figure their way out. Broaden our options. And deal with our distress in dignity, because, seeking sympathy doesn’t always help.

Let’s try and be the go-getter. Let’s be the energy. Let’s be the positivity that’ll help us cruise through the worst, successfully. Let’s muster the courage from our success to deal with our failures. Let’s learn to take things in our stride and march ahead.

Sitting out in a quiet corner, enjoying the evening breeze, watching the birds chirp and the squirrels run around, and finding bliss in the sunset. The mind is purely in the play mode, no rewind, no fast forward, and I’m compelled to breathe in the beauty of each moment.

The anxiety about the future forgotten, I’m just finding solace in the present.

Trust nature to help us ease out and rediscover ourselves amidst all the chaos, atleast for a little while every now and then.

Throwback to the time when we were told off at school for day dreaming during class hours. Throwback to the time when we were ticked off for getting distracted. A big throwback to the time when we were punished for not being attentive.

Time to put these unrecognised skills to good use. Time to put the day dreaming skills to make your day more productive.

Confused?

Lemme tell you how.

Be selectively receptive. Choose what you want to listen to. And zone out when you’re not interested. Zone out to where your brain takes you. Zone out to whatever attracts your attention. Zone out to what you’ve been thinking about, or would want to think about. Just zone out. But try avoiding the dreamy/serious look on your face when you are zoning out. It’s a little hard but can be mastered with practice.

This way, you’d still be in the group, physically (as much as you’d love to not be) but mentally, you’d be in your own space, in your own choice of place. And, subconsciously you’d still be part of the conversation, that if you suddenly happen to hear a word that attracts your attention, or your name thrown somewhere in the conversation, you can always say “Hey, what was that? Come again?” Or something like that. Cool, right?

Of course, you can’t be selectively receptive when you’re at work meetings or something important, but otherwise, this is one solid technique that always works for me, and helps me manage situations I don’t want to be part of. It helps me stay away from negativity, unwanted gossip, controversies and conversations I wouldn’t like to be part of, extremely easily.

Choose what you’d like to respond to. Choose what you’d like to be part of. Choose what you’d like to be receptive to.

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Choose Your Language!

A bit about me…

I hoard books for a living. And read them too, when I am not sleeping. I express what I think, so my unheard feelings don't sink. I like to sing when I walk, to keep shades grey, at bay. I speak like a dork, but I don't want to drive anyone away. I write what's real, and nothing fake, so visit my blog whenever you need a break ;)